Photo Edit for NPR: He asked strangers about things they regret not saying. The replies were cathartic
michele abercrombie
Jan 24, 2022
Photography by @geloyconcepcion
Story by @juliaawengg
In 2018, @geloyconcepcion Geloy Concepcion was going through a difficult time, having just immigrated to the San Francisco Bay Area from his home in Manila, Philippines. While his wife began working at a local café, he bore the responsibility of taking care of their daughter, leaving little time for his passion for photography.
"In the Philippines, I shot almost every day. And then when we moved here, my wife only had two days off. She said, 'Maybe you can just use one day to go around and take pictures.' So my 365 days of taking pictures became like 48 days a year."
It was a change that led Concepcion to turn inwards, setting him on an unexpected path to exploring the sometimes harrowing and overwhelming feelings that can accompany loneliness — in his own life at first, and then in the lives of others following the onset of the pandemic. Now those reflections are the focus of a collection from Concepcion called Things You Wanted To Say But Never Did.
"At first I was just like, 'Oh, I'll make maybe a series of 40 images.' And then after my first post, I think I got like 90 more responses. That's when I told my wife, 'I think I just started something.'"
Read the full story at NPR.org
Thank you to Julia Weng and Nicole Werbeck
He Asked Strangers About Things They Regret Not Saying. The Replies Were CatharticPhotographer Geloy Concepcion asked his Instagram followers to share "things you wanted to say but never did." Thousands of responses came in, touching on themes of love, fear, loneliness and grief.
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